


Wake Up and Smell the Coffee

by lamonnaie



Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: (of sorts), Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Barista! Sykkuno, Coffee, Customer! Corpse, Fluff, Ludwig POV, M/M, Relationship Reveal, coffee shop AU, outsider pov
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-04
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-14 19:02:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28550574
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lamonnaie/pseuds/lamonnaie
Summary: "Ludwig turned around, wanting to take the opportunity to call him over and embarrass his newly made friend. Yet he saw that Sykkuno was already returning the man’s gaze, with the two engaging in some intense eye contact that left Ludwig feeling as if he shouldn’t be seeing it. A soft smile had formed upon Sykkuno’s face. Ludwig hadn’t known him all that long, but he definitely did not smile like that at him."Sykkuno works at a coffee shop, Corpse is the odd customer, and Ludwig is just trying to figure out what's going on between them.
Relationships: Corpse Husband/Sykkuno (Video Blogging RPF)
Comments: 32
Kudos: 544





	Wake Up and Smell the Coffee

**Author's Note:**

> COFFEE SHOP AU!!! (Because I can never tire of them)  
> And I love our boy Ludwig, so I had to have him xD

Ludwig had been working at the Lucky Bean for years now. At first, it was a way for him to get some extra pocket money at the age of 17, an unmemorable first job for a restless teenager. Yet almost 8 years later, he was still there. It wasn’t that he really needed the job, quite the opposite actually. He’d discovered a new passion in streaming and it came with the bonus perk of a pretty decent paycheck, but he still picked up a shift or two as often as he could, simply because he liked it. He’d grown up around Sandy, the owner of the little café, and he couldn’t bear to part with her just yet.

It was a small, hole-in-the-wall kind of place, but to Ludwig and many of the regulars, it was like a second home. The exposed brick walls were covered in various knick-knacks Sandy had collected over the years, and the mismatched thrifted furniture added its own charm to the place. Its relatively small scale meant that they’d usually only have two or three employees in at once, making sure everyone was friendly with one another.

It was almost 1 in the afternoon, and Ludwig was hurrying towards the shop. He’d gotten distracted on a stream and completely forgotten that he had a shift today. In all his 8 years there, not once had he missed a shift, and he wouldn’t make today the first. He knew that he was supposed to be running the afternoon shift with Rae, another worker with whom Ludwig had come to be good friends, so he was a little surprised to spot an unfamiliar face at the counter.

“Hi there! I’m Sykkuno,” the man called out as soon as Ludwig entered the store, offering him a bright smile. He liked this man, Sykkuno, already.

Ludwig introduced himself in turn, then quickly went behind the counter to help out.

Despite having never met him, Ludwig had already heard plenty about Sykkuno. Sandy was constantly talking of the new _star employee_ who’d only joined a month ago but had somehow already become her favourite. Ludwig may or may not have been just a tiny bit jealous.

Rae, on the other hand, had been friends with Sykkuno long before he’d joined the Lucky Bean, so Ludwig knew through her that he had a dog called Bimbus, and that he was one of the kindest guys you could ever meet. She’d been the one who’d pushed Sykkuno to apply for the job, and when he’d passed the application stage with flying colours, Ludwig couldn’t wait to finally meet the man himself.

And here he was now.

“Rae couldn’t be in today, so I’m just covering her shift,” Sykkuno explained with a smile. That made sense.

The two fell into a steady rhythm, making new batches of cakes they were running low on and whisking up orders for the few customers they had. Wednesday afternoon wasn’t exactly peak hour, so they were left with plenty of time to spare.

That time was easily filled up by chatter between the two. They both had a love for video games that led to some interesting conversations, and Ludwig told the older man about his girlfriend and how both of them streamed. Sykkuno seemed pleasantly surprised by the information, and they discovered that Ludwig had streamed with some of his close friends. _Huh,_ the world really was a small place.

Just as they were about to set up a day to play some Minecraft together, a soft ringing resounded around the store, signifying a new customer.

“I’ll get that,” Ludwig jumped up, quickly going over to the counter.

“Cool, thanks!” Sykkuno replied. He went to the coffee machines at the back of the store, ready to make the customer’s order.

The man in front of Ludwig was different from the usual 3pm crowd of stay-at-home mums and teenagers straight from school. He was dressed to the nines in dark shades: a black hoodie over a similarly coloured turtleneck, complete with some ripped jeans and combat boots. A variety of silver rings adorned his fingers, and Ludwig couldn’t help but think that it would _hurt_ to get in a fight with this guy. A black facemask covered the lower of his face, with his thick curly hair obscuring much of the rest of him.

What was the oddest of all was that the man kept sneaking glances at Sykkuno, who remained oblivious with his back turned away from the counter. Ludwig felt it was within his rights to be a bit intimidated. Nevertheless, he put forth his customer service façade.

“Welcome to the Lucky Bean! How can I help you today?”

“Uh, I’ll get a black coffee thanks,” the man’s velvety voice reverberated around the room, at a pitch octaves lower than Ludwig had ever experienced.

Before the man had even finished saying his order, Ludwig heard a gasp from behind him. Yeah, he couldn’t blame Sykkuno for the reaction. If he hadn’t perfected his cashier persona over the years, he too would be shell-shocked by his deep voice.

Nevertheless, Ludwig was still working.

“That’ll be $4.50.”

The man passed over a 5-dollar bill with little focus. Instead, his eyes were locked on Sykkuno the entire time. It seemed that Sykkuno had gotten himself an admirer.

Ludwig turned around, wanting to take the opportunity to call him over and embarrass his newly made friend. Yet he saw that Sykkuno was already returning the man’s gaze, with the two engaging in some intense eye contact that left Ludwig feeling as if he shouldn’t be seeing it. A soft smile had formed upon Sykkuno’s face. Ludwig hadn’t known him all that long, but he definitely did _not_ smile like that at him.

 _Huh,_ so Sykkuno was interested too. It was up to Ludwig to do something about it before the customer left.

He quickly turned back to the register.

“We’ll have your drink out shortly,” he said with a smile. The man nodded, murmuring a thanks before relocating himself to the nearest table.

Ludwig felt that it was a safe distance away that he wouldn’t be able to hear them. With that reassurance, he headed over to Sykkuno with newfound vigour.

“Sykkuno, my man! That guy had eyes for you, and you obviously did too,” Ludwig stated knowingly, lightly grabbing Sykkuno’s shoulder in the process.

A blush spread over the older man’s cheeks, “Nah, it was nothing.”

Ludwig wouldn’t have any of this denial nonsense. “Kkuno! You two were practically eyefucking from across the room. I saw it with my own two, innocent eyes!”

Sykkuno practically choked on air, his eyes enlarging at the exclamation. “Shhh!” he let out, eyes flitting over to where the customer was sitting. Sykkuno was silent for a moment, seemingly debating something, before he spoke up again.

“Anyway, I already have a boyfriend,” he said nonchalantly.

 _“Oh_ , okay.”

So maybe he’d read the situation a little bit wrong. This new revelation completely flipped the cards for Ludwig. Was Sykkuno really smiling at the guy before, or was it a grimace? Ludwig didn’t want to think too much into it. He quickly relayed the lacklustre order to Sykkuno, wanting to get the guy out of there as soon as possible. He didn’t want him to cause any trouble.

He left Sykkuno to his work, not wanting to push more about his personal life given that he was barking up the _completely_ wrong tree last time. Nevertheless, he couldn’t help but let his thoughts wonder. What kind of a person would Sykkuno be dating? Sykkuno himself was a pretty chill and kind guy, that much he had figured out, and his pale green shirt and light blue jeans underneath the signature Lucky Bean apron made it clear that he was friendly with just about everyone.

For a boyfriend, Ludwig was sure that Sykkuno would be dating someone just like himself: all friendly smiles and pastel colours. They’d be the most approachable couple on the block. All this thinking about Sykkuno’s love life meant that Ludwig’s gaze inevitably wandered back to the man in question, who surprisingly hadn’t finished the easy order yet.

Instead, Sykkuno was back to looking at the black-clad man, wiggling his eyebrows in all sorts of ways. Ludwig followed his gaze and noticed the other man doubled over in laughter, quite gasps being drawn out of him as he too returned the odd gestures. _That_ smile was back on Sykkuno’s face, leaving Ludwig gobsmacked.

He thought Sykkuno wasn’t interested? So why were the two engaging in this abstract form of non-verbal communication from across the coffee shop, of all places?

Then a thought struck him: was the guy bothering Sykkuno? Or worse – was he _threatening_ him? Ludwig couldn’t have that happen under his watch.

He cleared his throat and briskly walked over to the machines.

“Need some help, Kkuno?”

Sykkuno jumped at the sudden sound, before reaching for the coffee machine once more. It had finally finished pouring.

“All good, I’ve got it,” he replied, grabbing the cup from its place.

“Cool! I’ll call the customer,” Ludwig said, wanting to minimise any interaction this guy had with Sykkuno.

“Uh actually Ludwig, I can just go give it to him. We don’t have that many customers right now anyway,” Sykkuno suggested with a shrug. He shuffled back and forth on the spot, seemingly nervous for Ludwig’s response.

Ludwig, for one, could not understand what was going on. He was so sure that Sykkuno didn’t like the guy, after all he already had a boyfriend, yet here he was, _volunteering_ to give him his order.

Ludwig sighed.

“Yeah sure.” As concerned as he was, he wouldn’t be the one to prevent Sykkuno from doing what he wanted to.

At his response, Sykkuno’s entire demeanour brightened. He let out a blinding smile before grabbing the drink and practically skipping over to the nearest table.

Whatever was about to go down, it was bound to be interesting. Ludwig watched on in curiosity. He told himself that it was to make sure Sykkuno was safe, but he had figured out by now that this odd man meant no harm.

Sykkuno had offered the man his order, but instead of taking it, he’d wrapped his hand around not only the cup but also Sykkuno’s hand. Ludwig was all but ready to go in and get rid of this man, but then he heard a noise.

Sykkuno was _giggling?_

One look at his face confirmed Ludwig’s suspicions: Sykkuno was elated at the touch. Each new interaction left Ludwig more and more confused. What about Sykkuno’s poor boyfriend? He never would have expected Sykkuno of all people to do something like this behind his boyfriend’s back.

The pair were now talking intently about something, facing each other and tuning out the rest of the world.

The other man had finally taken the drink, and had tactfully woven the straw beneath his mask and was now slowly sipping at his coffee. _At least the painfully long exchange was over,_ Ludwig thought.

His relief didn’t last for long.

The man’s other hand was perched upon the table, where he drummed a simple rhythm with his fingertips. While they talked, Sykkuno had subconsciously rested his own hand upon the other’s, intertwining their fingers in a practiced way.

If Ludwig was lost before, he’d dropped off the fucking planet by now. He’d never have expected Sykkuno to be this forward with someone.

He observed their little rendezvous for a couple more minutes, before deciding that he’d intruded enough. He made his way back to the coffee machines, hoping to find something to busy himself.

Whatever ended up happening between Sykkuno, his boyfriend and this other man was for them to sort out.

No sooner had he begun did he hear the familiar _screech_ of a chair pushing back. This was followed by the sound of two pairs of footsteps coming his way.

Ludwig turned around and was met by Sykkuno and the other man walking towards the counter. His eyes trailed downwards. They were holding hands. Now _that_ was moving fast, Ludwig couldn’t help but think.

“Ludwig, I’d like you to meet someone,” Sykkuno called out.

Ludwig placed down the dish cloth in his hand and walked over to the side of the counter.

“Yeah Kkuno?” he asked warily, eyeing the unknown man.

“This is my boyfriend, Corpse. And Corpse, this is Ludwig,” Sykkuno replied with a grin, gesturing towards each man as he introduced them to one another.

Oh. _Oh_.

Corpse raised his hand in a shy wave. Ludwig waved back, the puzzle pieces finally rearranging in his brain.

It all made a _lot_ more sense now.

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this in an hour at 12am, so there's probably a ton of mistakes. 😅 ~~I'll be back tomorrow to edit :)~~ Edited! :)  
> Thank you for reading!!  
> My [tumblr](http://lamonnaie.tumblr.com) <3


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